A Power Pack comeback from our Power Star Pawan Kalyan #PSPK
Vakeel Saab, which literally translates to ‘Lawyer Sir’, is both a celebration of Pawan Kalyan’s stardom and an evocative commentary on how women are judged in the society. Its heart lies in the second half of the drama when the narrative shifts to the courtroom, and it’s here that the film finds its rhythm and soul. The icing on the cake is a terrific performance from the lead cast, led by Pawan Kalyan, Prakash Raj, Nivetha Thomas, and Anjali, who hold your attention till the end.
The film stays loyal to Pink in the opening segment. Pallavi (Nivetha Thomas), Zareena (Anjali), and Diya (Ananya) are roommates in Hyderabad. Their backgrounds are different, but they are happy with their lives and support their respective families with their own hard-earned money. One night, while coming back from a party, they are left stranded in the outskirts of the city when their cab breaks down. Pallavi’s childhood friend, who is on his way to a resort along with his friends, gives them a lift; however, they end up going to a resort. Moments later, Pallavi, Zareena, and Diya run out of the resort, and Vamsi (Vamsi Krishna), an MP’s son, is hospitalized with a severe injury. The rest of the story is about how the life of the three women changes after this incident, and how a lawyer, Satyadev (Kalyan) comes to their rescue.
After this opening segment, Vakeel Saab feels the weight of the expectations of having a star like Pawan Kalyan playing a central character in the story, which is fundamentally about the three women driving the story forward. To justify Pawan Kalyan’s presence in the story, Sriram Venu weaves an elaborate backstory about how Satyadev became a man of the masses, a messiah to the weak and downtrodden seeking justice, and the reason why he was compelled to take up law in the first place.
Thankfully, the narrative undergoes a dramatic course correction and finds its path just when the proceedings seem hopeless.
The reason why Vakeel Saab works extremely well in the second half boils down to how honest it is about what it wants to say. The presence of Pawan Kalyan and Prakash Raj, especially when the two take each other head on, accentuates the drama. Sparks fly during their arguments and director Sriram Venu channelizes Pawan Kalyan’s aggression to a dramatic effect. Unlike Amitabh Bachchan’s Deepak Sehgal in Pink, Pawan Kalyan’s Vakeel Saab is a lot more flamboyant, aggressive, and argumentative in the court. There’s no room for subtlety, and the whole second half has an unrestrained energy that uplifts the underlying emotion in the story. As Satyadev, Pawan Kalyan delivers one of his best performances in a long time.
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